Let’s talk numbers … uniform numbers.
Watching spring training, the issue of numbers was front and center. The numbers of baseball players who were never going to make the roster used to be in the 50s and 60s. But since stars started wearing higher numbers, that assumption has been struck down. Yankees' No.1 prospect, rookie shortstop, Anthony Volpe, wore No. 77 in spring training and became No. 11 when the season opened, but that is on a team in which 16 uniform numbers have been retired to honor 15 players and managers; and their best current player, Aaron Judge, wears 99, though, perhaps the most famous 99 of all was worn by hockey’s “Great One,” Wayne Gretzky.
Higher numbers used to be reserved for late-season call-ups or spring training fodder.
In 1929, the New York Yankees started wearing numbers on their uniforms, and the numbers aligned with their place in the batting order. Babe Ruth hit third and was No. 3. Lou Gehrig batted clean-up and wore No. 4. When numbers became commonplace, meager-hitting infielders often wore low numbers, pitchers wore double-digits and relievers wore high 50s.
The first numbers in baseball were worn by the 1916 Cleveland Indians, who responded to complaints of scorekeepers and fans who couldn’t tell who was who on the field. But fans, opposing players, and sportswriters laughed at the Tribe and the numbers were eliminated in a few weeks. In 1923, the St. Louis Cardinals wore numbers on their uniform sleeves but were taken down quickly, as players were ridiculed. The World Champion Yankees made numbers a thing in 1929, and the Indians recalled them the same season, and actually wore them in a game before the Yanks, as New York’s home opener was rained out and the Tribe got on the field first with numbers on their unis.
New Zealand and Australian rugby teams wore numbers in the 1890s. The first numbers in soccer were worn in 1911, by Australian teams Sydney Leichardt and HMS Powerful. The first football teams to wear numbers were Drake University and Iowa State, on Thanksgiving Day, 1905. Drake players wore 1-25 and Iowa State footballers wore 26-50. In the NFL, teams generally had numbers, but in 1929, the Orange/Newark Tornadoes used letters instead of numbers. The NBA has had numbers since its beginning in 1946.
Back to baseball, now, anyone can wear any number unless the number has been retired. Kenley Jansen wears 74 for his address as a kid in Curacao. Rays pitcher Blake Snell was issued No. 50 but didn’t like that number, though Sid Fernandez wore it years earlier, as an homage to his home state, Hawaii, the 50th state. Snell wanted No. 4 because his birthday is Dec. 4. Marcus Stroman, formerly with the Blue Jays and Mets, chose No. 6 as a tribute to his grandmother’s birth date. Now with the Cubs, he is the first Cub ever to wear the number 0.
Hockey legend Mario Lemieux wore 66 as an inverted tribute to Wayne Gretzky’s 99. Hockey’s Phil Esposito turned to No. 77 instead of No. 7 when with the Rangers, since 7 was being worn by team captain, Rod Gilbert, known as “Mr. Ranger.” Boston’s Ray Bourque switched from 7 to 77 to honor Esposito when Espo retired and had his No. 7 retired by the Bruins.
So who best represents a number for you? For many, No. 7 is the Mick; No.3 is the Babe; No. 4 is Gehrig, but those are all Yankees … how about No. 42 retired across Major League Baseball for Jackie Robinson?
Some of the best athletes across numerous sports are best identified with a uniform number. Among them are:
No. 00 - Robert Parish (Celtics, NBA) and Jim Otto (Raiders, NFL)
No. 1 - Oscar Robertson (Milwaukee Bucks, NBA, but he was just as notable wearing No. 14 for the Royals), Ozzie Smith (Cardinals) and Billy Martin (Yankees)
No. 2 - Derek Jeter (Yankees) and Moses Malone (76ers, NBA)
No. 3 - Babe Ruth (Yankees), Dale Earnhardt (NASCAR)
No. 4 - Lou Gehrig (Yankees), Bobby Orr (Bruins, NHL), Brett Favre (Packers, NFL), Duke Snider (Dodgers)
No. 5 - Joe DiMaggio (Yankees), Nick Lidstrom (Red Wings, NHL), Paul Hornung (Packers, NFL)
No. 6 - Bill Russell (Celtics, NBA), Stan Musial (Cardinals)
No. 7 - Mickey Mantle (Yankees), John Elway (Broncos, NFL), Howie Morenz (Canadiens, NHL), Phil Esposito (Blackhawks and Bruins, NHL), Rod Gilbert (Rangers, NHL)
No. 8 - Yogi Berra (Yankees), Cal Ripken Jr. (Orioles), Carl Yastrzemski (Red Sox), Kobe Bryant (Lakers, NBA), Alexander Ovechkin (Capitals, NHL)
No. 9 - Gordie Howe (Red Wings, NHL), Ted Williams (Red Sox), Bob Pettit (Hawks, NBA), Roger Maris (Yankees), Drew Breeze (Saints, NFL)
No. 10 – Pele (Brazil, Soccer), Walt Frazier (Knicks, NBA), Tyreek Hill (Chiefs, NFL)
No. 11 - Mark Messier (Oilers, Rangers, NHL), Carl Hubbell (Giants), Norm Van Brocklin (Rams, NFL), Yao Ming (Rockets, NBA)
No. 12 - Too many NFL quarterbacks to mention, Bobby Allison (NASCAR)
No. 13 – Wilt Chamberlain (Warriors, Lakers, NBA), Dan Marino (Dolphins, NFL)
No. 14 – A.J. Foyt (IndyCar), Oscar Robertson (Royals, NBA), Bob Cousy (Celtics, NBA), Ernie Banks (Cubs), Pete Rose (Reds),
No. 15 – Bart Starr (Packers, NFL), Maurice Richard (Canadiens, NHL), Vince Carter (Mavericks, NBA), Carmelo Anthony (Nuggets, NBA), and currently, Patrick Mahomes (Chiefs, NFL)
No. 16 - Joe Montana (49ers, NFL), Whitey Ford (Yankees)
Others (so that we don’t go 1-99, include)
No. 21 - Roberto Clemente (Pirates)
No. 23 - Michael Jordan (Bulls, NBA) LeBron James (Cavaliers, Heat, Lakers, NBA), Don Mattingly (Yankees)
No. 24 - Willie Mays (Giants), Kobe Bryant (Lakers, NBA), Jeff Gordon (NASCAR), Ken Griffey Jr., (Mariners, Reds)
No. 30 - Many great hockey goalies, like the NFL’s No. 12, Steph Curry (Warriors, NBA), Terrell Davis (Broncos, NFL),
No. 32 – Sandy Koufax (Dodgers), Jimmy Brown (Browns, NFL), Ervin “Magic” Johnson (Lakers, NBA)
No. 33 - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Lakers, NBA), Larry Bird (Celtics, NBA)
No. 34 - Walter Payton (Bears, NFL), Shaquille O’Neal (Lakers, NBA), Nolan Ryan (Astros, Rangers)
No. 40 - Gale Sayers (Bears, NFL) and Henrik Zetterberg (Red Wings, NHL)
No. 42 - Jackie Robinson (Dodgers – had his number retired by MLB), Mariano Rivera (Yankees), and, according to “The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy,” 42 is “the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything.”
No. 43 - Richard Petty (NASCAR)
No. 44 - Henry Aaron (Braves), Jerry West (Lakers, NBA)
No. 51 - Dick Butkus (Bears, NFL), Ichiro Suzuki (Mariners)
No. 66 - Mario Lemieux (Penguins, NHL), Ray Nitschke (Packers, NFL)
No. 77 – Ray Bourque (Bruins, NHL), and many athletes can’t have No. 7, so they double it.
No. 85 - Chad OchoCinco aka Chad Johnson, as he changed his name to make it synonymous with his number (Bengals, NFL),
No. 87 - Sid Crosby, who took the number because his birthday is 8-7-87 (Penguins, NHL)
No. 99 - Wayne Gretzky (Oilers, Kings, NHL), Aaron Judge (Yankees), George Mikan (Lakers, NBA)
Are there other numbers that mean one player to you? Did you wear a player’s number as a kid? Which one or ones? Let me know at mike.blake@mountvernonnews.com
